Non-vascular stents and catheters are commonly used to promote drainage in various parts of the body. For example, ureteral stents are used to create a pathway for urinary drainage from the kidney to the bladder in patients with ureteral obstruction or injury or to protect the integrity of the ureter in a variety of surgical manipulations. Unfortunately, ureteral stents, particularly the portion positioned in the ureter and the bladder, may produce adverse effects including hemorrhage, a continual urge to urinate, flank pain accompanying reflux of urine back up the ureter due to retrograde pressure when voiding, and chronic trigone irritation. Attempts to mitigate some of these problems associated with ureteral stents include administering systemic pharmaceuticals such as anti-spasmodic drugs. However, it is difficult to deliver such agents to the desired areas of treatment with conventional devices.
The present invention relates to ureteral stents and catheters that elute a fluid containing a therapeutic agent. The invention may be applied to other stents and catheter applications, in other parts of the body, such as urethral stent and biliary stents.